Unspeakable
"And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them." ~ Revelation 11:7 Prologue It had been many years since Inferno Pendragon had sacrificed his life in the war against Ebonscale, delivering the fatal blow to the great ancient and averting the end of all things - his world had been restored several times since that day, with many heroes rising and falling as the great cycle continued. His death had united many but also caused a great divide, opening wounds that shattered the multiverse - the "Once and Future King" had indeed left his mark upon reality even in death. Standing atop a small hill lay a small stone that marked the final resting place of Inferno Pendragon, though it was largely symbolic - his body having long been burned to ash on a pyre as was the custom for fallen heroes. Yet the spot was rarely left alone and even now, as the sun began to set, a young figure kneeled before the stone and bowed her head - spreading her wings out as she placed several roses down on the ground. The young woman looked to the stone with glowing red eyes, which despite their demonic appearance were filled with sadness rather than malice - placing a hand on the surface of the stone the woman smiled faintly: "..father? I brought you flowers - I know you like flowers.. I hope mother is treating you well, wherever you are..". "He can't hear you" a dark voice states callously, an armored figure landing behind the woman - resembling in many ways a Pegacorn herself but it is clearly armor that is fashioned to make her appear so, one of the figure's arms replaced by a large axe which gave away her identity as Carmine. "Indeed, he is dead - due to his own stupidity.." another voice adds, a figure dressed in a red robe manifesting over the stone - hovering just above it and staring at the others with glowing yellow eyes. The woman simply stands up and glares at the two newcomers, "..so what if he can or can not? is it not my right to speak with my father? what is it to you? a terrorist and a parasite.. neither of whom could understand what it is to grieve.." "I know plenty about grieving, Sangria - more than you will ever know.." Carmine states. The robed figure simply continues to hover in place, "..do you know the truth about your father, Sangria? he was a manipulator and a thief.. his death is seen as a sacrifice yet do you honestly believe it was real? I know Inferno and I have news for you.. it wasn't.. though I must admit it was a surprise to find out that everything we ever thought to be true was a lie.. yet after a brief moment of resentment I have to admit.. it's pretty funny.." - for the first time in a long time the robed figure actually chuckles slightly. "..W-what are you talking about?! my father was a good man! he LOVED me!" Sangria growls, clenching her fists as she trembles a little - a volatile mix of anger and fear passing through her body. "Misery - what have you done?" Carmine asks angrily, taking a few steps towards the robed figure and brandishing her axe-arm as if ready to strike at any moment. Misery doesn't get the chance to answer however as the area suddenly shatters beneath the group's feet and a gigantic dragon emerges from the ground, bathing the area in crackling black lightning as it spreads tattered wings and lets out a terrifying roar. Misery fades away as she observes the scene with obvious amusement, "..not me.. someone new.. come and stop us.. heroes.." she taunts - then vanishes completely. "My God.. Misery.." Carmine gasps as she takes flight using her artificial wings, geniunely shocked at what she witnesses. Sangria takes flight as well, watching as the gigantic dragon flies off - leaving a gaping hole in the hillside that spills out black smoke across the area: it doesn't take long for tears of fury to fill Sangria's eyes as she flies at Carmine with her fists ablaze with crackling black energy: "YOU MONSTERS!". Carmine reacts swiftly, managing to avoid the attack and delivers a painful blow with her one remaining fist, clenched tight and aiming for Sangria's stomach - "..I had nothing to do with this..". Sangria lets out a cry of anger and frustration as her attack is avoided but takes the blow directly, flinching only for a moment before flying right back at Carmine and unleashing another bolt of black lightning at her: "LIAR! YOU LIAR!". "Control your anger, Sangria!" Carmine warns, delivering another blow as she once again manages to narrowly avoid the bolt of lightning - using only her fist and keeping her axe-arm down, as if reluctant to use it against Sangria. Sangria responds by roaring at Carmine, feeling herself changing inside she looks in surprise as her hands begin to grow into talons and her dark skin starts to become covered in a layer of red fur, her fangs growing as her face becomes more bestial and her wings grow even larger as a draconic tail sprouts out of her back. Carmine growls a little in turn and before Sangria can fully react Carmine flies forward and strikes out using her axe-arm, delivering a powerful blow designed to knock her right out of the sky,' "..I warned you, Sangria.. now stay down!"'. Sangria yelps as she falls down, black lightning sparking through her body as she plummets a good distance before hitting down on the ruined hillside - her wings folding over herself as she lays on the ground, exhausted and broken. Carmine watches as Sangria falls and waits a few moments, then takes flight out of the area''' "I didn't want to do that, Sangria.. how many more times will you force me to hurt you?"' she states before leaving the area entirely. Chapter 1 - Those Who Endure Two long days passed by and Sangria finally left the Royal Palace of Avalon, news would normal travel fast of an event as terrible as the one she had witnessed but Equis had ensured that Avalon was made largely unaware of the truth - yet not even Equis could hide the scar the event had left on the hill nor could he pretend the gigantic dragon that swooped across the sky that night was a phantom. As Equis departed on a quest to find that dragon Sangria was left with the task of trying to keep order in Avalon in his absence - a matter made worse by the fact she was also beginning to take command of her mother's Kingdom, sharing the Crown of two worlds was beyond even Sangria's power and she began to feel herself slowly but surely crush under the weight of such responsibility. The Resistance helped as much as they could and Sangria's heart filled with sadness at how she still had to outlaw them even after all these years, the sins of the past unable to be wiped clean and the rules of her mother still in place - Sangria knew better than to try and change those rules, especially now in the midst of such turbulence. Making her way to the edge of the Royal garden Sangria sat down and looked to a small statue depicting a young dragon, sighing a little she whispered: "..oh Murk, I wish you were here.. you'd know what to do..". ('ooc: this saga is now open for editting, as mentioned it is Book 4 and the main antagonists shall be Misery, Psychosis, Inferno's Rage, The Hatter, Jack, Gepetto and Doctor Foster (yeah - this is going to be interesting) ''') "Sangria?" a quiet voice speaks out, revealing an older female Pegacorn dressed in a flowing white dress - a glowing rod made of gold signifying her rank as Royal Priestess. Category:Sagas Category:Book IV Category:War Category:Dark Category:Fantasy Category:Supernatural Category:Stories Recruiting Editors